I see that Steve Miller has finally been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I still listen to some of his classics: “Jet Airliner,” “Rock n Me,” “The Joker,” etcetera, etcetera. It brings to mind a conversation I once had with a relative of his — a cousin, I think — who said that ol’ Steve will never be inducted into the rock and roll Hall because of an ongoing dispute he had been carrying on with the powers that be. I don’t remember what the controversy was all about, but he pointed out that Steve could be a very stubborn guy.
So I was surprised when I read the news that the old rocker was inducted earlier this month along with N.W.A., Cheap Trick, Deep Purple and Chicago. And I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised to read that Miller dissed the Rock Hall in his acceptance speech, saying it should be more inclusive of women.
Fair enough. The more interesting controversy, to me, was the dustup between MC Ren and Gene Simmons of Kiss, who recently admitted he was “looking forward to the death of hip-hop.” After taking a predictable amount of flak from hip-hop fans, Simmons responded again with the message, “Let me know when Jimi Hendrix gets into the hip-hop hall of fame.”
In other words, hip-hop still has a long way to go to merit the kind of prestige the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame enjoys.
Spirited arguments between music fans have been going on, I suppose, as far back as during the days of Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. You probably wouldn’t be surprised to hear that as a grown man nearing 60 years old, I’ve never been a fan of hip-hop (I’m not sure I would call it “music,” to be honest), but I will certainly say the interesting mixture of 2016 Rock Hall inductees brings home the point that several revolutions have come and gone since the days of Bing and Frank.
Sinatra, himself, was once a harsh critic of the form of rock and roll popularized by Elvis Presley, reportedly calling it “the most brutal, ugly, desperate, vicious form of expression it has been my misfortune to hear.”
Presley’s response was interesting in part for its humility. “It’s the greatest music ever, and it will continue to be so. I like it, and I’m sure many other persons feel the same way. I also admit it’s the only thing I can do.”
The Beatles’ John Lennon once said, “Before Elvis, there was nothing.” You might say that because of the inspiration Elvis provided for Lennon, rock and roll music has evolved in ways that Sinatra could not have imagined at the time.
So now we have an incredible variety of forms, and we have an incredible variety of forms within the forms. I love the Beatles’ music. I enjoy Frank Sinatra songs, too. I have to admit I know nothing of N.W.A., but I’ve listened to a lot of Chicago music and I’m impressed to be reminded once again that the same two acts can share induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame at the very same time.
Keep on a’ rockin’ me.